Guardian of the Gate
by Ren0Zia
Summary: Time is a burden. That is the fate of the Gate's guardian. A Gate that includes the truth of the universe. It can curse a man or grant all wishes and explain the concept of magic. However, like all other great things, it is unreachable to man. If man were to reach it, he would have to pay a price dearer than life. Only one being man access the information. This is the guardian.
1. Wish

_**Disclaimer : I do not own FullMetal Alchemist.**_

Time is a burden. That is their fate.

A Gate that includes the truth of the universe and includes all information that man can dream of. It can curse a man or even grant the most impossible of wishes and it can explain to you the concept of magic. However, like all other great things, it is unreachable to man. If a human were to reach it, he would have to pay a price more dearly than life. Even so, the Gate must have a special being to prove its worth; a being that can guard it while standing above all other humans.

The information of the Gate can be accessed by none other but than a lonely soul. The fortunate one, the ill-fated one, God or Satan; call it what ever you want but its existence will not change. The guardian of the Gate is an eternal being, never aging, never breaking, but nothing can last forever. Every nine hundred ninety nine years, before the pure guardian is tainted by the sins of humanity, a new guardian must be chosen. After, it will become the new guardian's duty to carry on his predecessor, but before hand, he must finish of his predecessor before he is stained by man's blood and lust, becoming a being more fearful than the universe itself. The being will swallow up everything and eventually, become unstoppable. That is the ultimate sin of the guardian that should not ever be committed, therefore, he has to choose his own assassin carefully.

* * *

**Ed's POV**

"Do not leave me alone!" I cried as my mother, my remaining parent, breathed for the last time, closing her eyes, leaving a faint smile on her face.

"Nii-san," Alphonse said to me. "What is wrong with mom?"

Regardless of what he says, Alphonse should know just as well as I do what was happening. We sat there stunned for a moment only to see a flash of lightning followed by a crash of thunder and a spinning whirlwind falling from the sky and swallowing up my mother before she disappeared, leaving behind not a single trace.

We sat there stunned, unable to say a word. Tears were streaming out of Alphonse's eyes and then his eyes glazed over only to open a second later, without tears, looking confused.

When I turned to face Alphonse, he asked me, "What were we doing, Nii-san? Who is this "mom" that we speak about?"

* * *

After that, I was desperate. I remembered reading about this thing called alchemy in a book before, including something about illegally bringing human's back to life in return for a great sacrifice. I drew a large circle and I prayed, sending all my will power down to my hands which are on the edge of the decorated circle.

Something went wrong. That was for certain. The beautiful white light, described as God's light in the book, was replaced by a dark purple energy and then, I saw Alphonse's body being sucked up by tentacles. At that time, I was really hanging on to what I had left and I had no other choice. I drew the same circle as the one on the ground on my body and then I spoke, "Take every part of my body, take every part of my soul. Regardless of what you do to me, please, my Lord, bring me back my brother, Alphonse Elric and ensure that he will live a long and happy life and that he will not suffer because of Hohenheim's disappearance and mother's death."

After that, I simply blacked out and dreamt of a large and empty place that includes neither light nor darkness.

At that time, we also knew: The reason that mom was so happy watching us learn alchemy. It reminded her of that despicable old man that will never return to us.

* * *

When I woke up again, I was at Winry's house. I probably sat up suddenly in a strange way because Pinako and Alphonse were startled. After that, I realized that my leg and arm were missing. I wanted to panic but I could not. I could not even speak.

"Alphonse, go outside and play with Winry for a while," Pinako told my brother. He slowly obeyed. Then she stared at me with stone-cold eyes and told me, "We have a lot to talk about."

After that, she began her story: "When you were young, I met your father, Hohenheim, many times. Most of he time, he was alone but when he was with your mother, they were always smiling. After you were born and Alphonse was yet to come, you father left and never returned. Your mother told me that he had to return to go on his journey and his duty. Not long after that, all traces of him on this Earth disappeared.

"You might not have noticed after all this time because of not being able to meet a lot of people but following your father's disappearance, the villagers' memories of both your mother and Hohenheim also began fading. If you went outside and asked them about your parents, they would stare at you and tell you that you are an orphan and then wonder if you are having hallucinations. That has never affected me, Winry, you and Alphonse but now the situation has changed. Your brother has forgotten that your parents existed."

"Th-that is impossible!" I exclaimed. "They definitely existed!"

"I know that," Pinako answered, "But you cannot prove that to the others. Furthermore, you would probably have noticed that you are missing an arm and a leg. The reason, I cannot say for certain but it is probably because of a dangerous existence. Tell me Edward, have you tried any dangerous magic or, what is that called, alchemy or made any stupid wishes?"

I decided not to tell her about the extra "details" for she will kill me if she finds out that I committed the taboo of trying to revive or transmute my mom and myself. "I only made two wishes: for Alphonse to live a long and happy life and for Alphonse to not suffer because of Hohenheim's disappearance and mother's death."

"You goddamned idiotic child!" Pinako cried.

I was confused. "Wh-wh-what?!" That was the first time that I had heard her swear.

"Your wish was granted by some crazy thing, probably related to alchemy, resulting in your brother's memory loss. On top of that, you probably had to pay the price with your arm and leg!"

"Does that mean my wishes have been granted? Al will not suffer anymore because of their disappearances?"

"Yes but the price that you will have to pay in return is larger and worse than that of what I can imagine," sighed Pinako gravely. Then she went to the kitchen to make stew and dinner for the four of us.

* * *

After Pinako left, I decided that no matter what my punishment would be in during my path until my death, I would definitely, without a doubt, ensure that Alphonse, at least, can live the happy and long life that my parents were not able to and that I would soon be unable to.

As I watched Alphonse happily playing outside with Winry from the bed that I was sitting in, I wished that this happiness would last until the end of our insignificant lives. At that time, I already knew how small and useless the word "forever" was.

* * *

Now that I think back, at that time, I did not know that all the gears of the world were turning, spinning into place and becoming that desperate end.

Chapter 1 – Wish

_**Sorry was that too short? Or too hard to understand? I am writing this at 3 am so I really am sorry for any grammatical errors or anything of the sort. Please review! **_

_**~Ren0Zia**_


	2. Thievery

_**Disclaimer: I do not own FullMetal Alchemist.**_

* * *

**Ed's POV**

The next time that I saw Alphonse was the following morning as he walked into the room. I had a piece of toast in my mouth and Winry poured tea on her hand.

"Good morning, Nii-san," he said to me. I quickly ate the toast and then I put a smile on my face.

"Hi," I answered.

"Nii-san, is your leg alright?"

"Ah, yes. That reminds me: Pinako, there is money left in the account that Hohenheim left my mom. Could you give me automail?"

Alphonse stared at me, shocked, but I had no choice. I needed to get stronger to be able to protect Alphonse. I repeatedly told myself over and over again the night before. "There is no choice, there is no other choice."

"It is going to be painful," Pinako told me. It did not matter, though. I was prepared.

* * *

Three days later, I was sitting on a bed getting ready for them to put on my automail leg and arm. Alphonse was shut outside the room and forbidden to come in. It was better that way. It is not something that Alphonse needs to see.

"Careful now. Connecting the nerves are going to hurt," Winry and Pinako warned me. I was ready.

They put the arm on me first. The pain scorched my arm and despite all my efforts to not do so, I screamed like never before. I had never felt anything like that before. It was as if they were slowly sawing at my skin, waiting for me to die and then leaving me out to dry in the sun once I was separated in several pieces. I wish Alphonse did not hear my screaming.

After a while, I blacked out. When I came to again, five hours have passed and Alphonse was standing next to the bed that I was occupying but I did not know what I should say to him so instead, I simply smiled.

"Nii-san, are you all right?" he asked me. The pain still resides but that is not for Alphonse to know.

"I am fine, Al. You do not have to worry about me." A few minutes later, Pinako brought us tea.

"Al, go outside and play with Winry for a bit or else she will be lonely," I told him. After Alphonse left the room, I turned to Pinako and said, "I will join the army."

"Why in the world would you join such a goddamned place?!" she asked me. "Do you not realize that once war has started, you will have to fight and kill?"

I realized that completely. "There is no other way. We cannot earn money in this place and most of our money is gone. If I become a State Alchemist then I can earn a lot of money." My face twisted at the thought of going to war. I knew the taste and smell of blood too clearly.

"Edward, you are a child that is barely one year over a decade old! How can they accept you?"

"I will have to try. If I cannot join the military, then I will become a thief, however, I think more blood will be spilt then. Please do not tell Al about this yet." My face showed that the conversation was over.

* * *

That night, I ran away from Pinako's house to go to the capital. There, I will be able to earn money and then mail it back to Alphonse. However, not everything went as planned. On the train, I saw a speck of light blond hair. When I turned to look, I saw Alphonse sitting in the chair behind mine.

"Al!" I cried, "What are you doing here?"

"I am going with Nii-san to the capital. I heard what you said to Pinako about joining the army so I am following you."

I sighed, putting a smile on my face again. I could not afford to allow Alphonse to see my distress about what he did.

"I will join the military, too. I can also perform a bit of Alchemy so it should not be a problem." Alphonse told me.

When he said that, I panicked. No matter the reason, there was no way that I could allow Alphonse to become the military's dog. I had to think fast. With that smile still planted on my face, I spoke to Alphonse. "Al, you cannot join the military. I heard about a rumour that if two brothers join the army together, they will be haunted for the rest of their lives by the ghosts that live there."

Alphonse shuddered. I was lucky that he was still scared of ghosts. "I need to help Nii-san," said Alphonse, stubbornly.

"Then you can help with housework and chores." was the most solid answer that I could give him then.

"Okay!" he happily agreed.

* * *

When we arrived at the capital, the first thing that I did was use most of the remaining amount of money that mother left us to rent a small apartment.

"I know that it is small but please bear with it for a while," I told Alphonse using my "smile."

"It is great, Nii-san!" Alphonse cried happily.

If Alphonse liked it, then it was alright for me. The apartment was not spacious but contained two bedrooms with small washrooms and a kitchen/living room. After meeting us, the man who rented us this also kindly gave us basic furniture including a pot, a table, a stove and a bed and a spare mattres.

* * *

The following day, I went to this place called Central. There, you could apply for the State Alchemist examinations. When I went there, the guards kicked me out. After they did that, I tried charging. I got passed the guards but that was as far as I could go. Some man with black hair followed by a blond woman came. The man snapped his fingers and a stream of fire was sent across the room and would have seriously injured me if I did not dodge.

"Get out," he commanded, then glared at the guards.

"Our apologies, Colonel Mustang," they said saluting to the man called Mustang.

At that moment, I knew that I could not win against him and so, I left. It did not surprise me that they did not allow me to take the exam. They would never allow what they considered an eleven year old brat to so.

When I first came to Central, I think I already knew that they were not going to accept me. However, I had a back up plan. As I told Pinako, I was going to become a thief. My ability to do Alchemy by simply slapping my hands together also helped. If it is becoming a theif, I can definitely do it. On the way back to the apartment, I used all of the money that was left to buy Alphonse new clothes, food, and a mask, gloves, an air freshener, and a shirt for combat for me.

* * *

When I returned to the apartment, Alphonse was making soup with the vegetables that we bought on our way to the building.

"How was the examination?" Alphonse asked me.

I plastered that smile on my face again. "It was great! I passed. I will go to work starting tomorrow, however, I will be doing the late shifts so if I am home late, do not wait for me and go to bed, agreed?" Ha. As if he would wait for me. I was thinking selfishly but that was better off then if he were actually waiting for me.

"OK, Nii-san, but do not be too late."

* * *

That night, after Alphonse went to sleep, I slipped on my combat shirt and snuck out the window. I jumped from roof to roof, trying to find a good target. Then I found it. Although most of the houses were more like manors of mansions, I chose a middle sized mansion with really less security. I needed practice with small fry first.

After turning my automail arm into a blade, I jumped over the back gate of the house. The security guards who saw me were knocked out before they even got a chance to open their mouths. That was my first mistake. They had seen the part of my face that was not covered with the fabric mast that came with the combat shirt and my unmistakable golden yellow hair in its braid. I had to kill them. Wincing slightly, I stabbed the three unlucky guards in the heart. Their blood splattered onto my shirt and their expression was shocked. They did not even have time to close their eyes before they died. I knew that their faces will be in my dreams that night. At that time, I thought, _It is alright. I will not be bothered my this. This is for Alphonse's sake and happiness. Yes, that was right,_ I finally remembered it. _If it is for Alphonse's sake, I will do anything._ After that, I entered the mansion from the back window.

In the mansion, it was filled with goods and flat screened televisions. As I walked, I saw a chain of gold watches. I wondered if they could sell for a lot of money. I grabbed them in my hands and weighed them. They were about 88% pure gold. They will sell for a good price. Next, I went to the steel safe decorated with rubies and silver. I wondered why the rich made their safes so obvious, but it did not matter to me. I quietly sliced the refrigerator-sized safe in half and stuck all the money into my bag.

When I was about to leave, a young girl appeared. She had blond hair and blue eyes like Alphonse and was about a year younger than him. I yelped in surprise, quickly covering my masked mouth. I needed to kill her. She stood speechless, staring at my bag and my automail blade. Then she spoke.

"Hello, Onii-chan. What are you doing here? Do you need to speak to mom or dad?"

I was shuddering, disgusted at my weakness. I was scared to kill that girl. Scared, scared, scared. That word echoed in my brain. I did not want another face, shocked and still to appear in my dreams and make them nightmares. Scared, scared, scared, scared, scared. My hand quavered and then, I lifted up my blade and brought it down to the girl's neck. It sliced clean off. Blood bursted from the stump where her head used to be. The iron smelling blood scattered across the room covering several pieces of silver and hitting a few televisions and sofas. It sprayed over my face, my hair and my eyes, but my brain was numb. The only thing that I could think of at that time was, _Thank God that Alphonse and I used separate washrooms. _

Then, I left.

* * *

When I crawled in the window again, I used the air freshener to lighten the smell of blood. After that, I took off my shirt putting it in the sink. Slowly, without thinking, I started scrubbing the blood off. When I was done, I crawled into bed, too tired to do anything else.

In my dream that night, I saw the four faces of the people I killed. "Onii-chan, Onii-chan," the girl moaned. "Why did you kill me? What did I ever do to you? Murderer, murderer, murderer." Then the three guards told me, "It is your fault that we became like this. YOU did this to us." Then their heads split open, showering me with whatever was in their head, pieces of brain, red worm-like things and blood. Then they joined the young girl's chant. "Murderer, murderer, murderer."

I woke up, dripping with sweat. Then, without realizing it, tears started streaming uncontrollably down my face, making my pillow and bed sheets wet. I sobbed and sobbed. When I was done, I scribbled a not to Alphonse and stuck it on my door: "_My shift is at night. Do not wake me up until then. ."_ That should do the trick.

I could not sleep until morning came. The next time that I woke up, it was four in the afternoon.

* * *

"Good morning, Al!" I exclaimed, plastering a smile on my face.

"Morning? It is past noon, Nii-san." He replied. That was good. He did not hear anything of what happened last night. "When is your shift?"

"From eight to eleven. Since I am only beginning, they gave me a short shift. Go to sleep without waiting for me."

"Okay. Dinner will be on the table."

"Right, I forgot to mention. Because I was slightly underage, my joining the army was a secret and I only serve as an errand boy for a certain colonel so do NOT mention it to anyone. Promise?"

"Promise," smiled Alphonse.

* * *

Chapter 2 - Thievery

_**Thank you for reading,**_

_**~Ren0Zia**_


	3. Murderer

_**Disclaimer: I do not own FullMetal Alchemist**_

* * *

**Ed's POV**

At night, before I was going to go out for my "night time shift," as I told Alphonse, he knocked on the door of my bedroom.

"Nii-san, I looked out the window and I saw the police and military outside a house. From the gossip and rumours I heard, apparently three guards and the only daughter of the household was killed," Alphonse said to me. "A lot of their treasure and money was gone, too. Do you think that it was a thief?"

"I am sure that it was just some maid wanting to strike rich. Do not worry about it." I answered, wincing and glad that he was outside the door and could, therefore, not see my expression.

"Yes. I hope that it does not happen again."

"So do I." When I said that, I realized that for the first time since we reached Central, I spoke the solid and one hundred percent truthful thought that crossed my mind. "Well, I have to go to work soon. See you tomorrow!"

"Bye, Nii-san."

* * *

During the time of my "night time shift," I had a lot of things to do, but before I could do those things, I needed to find a way to bring my sac of gold pocket watches outside to trade. I hid them in my shirt, pulling then apart from the sac of money stored safely in a hole in the ground that I made under my mattress. I also brought a few bills with me but later realized that it was useless since I was going to trade the watches for money anyway.

When I left, Alphonse was at the door, being sure to say goodbye. He was kind to me and again, I looked at him with my fake smile. I will always smile in front of Alphonse.

After I left the house, the first thing that I did was go to a small trading shop and get a few bills for a golden pocket watch. Next, I went to another gold-trading store and traded another gold pocket watch, being sure to hide my face each time. Then, I continued trading pocket watches until I did not have anymore. On the other hand, I still hade some more under my mattress so that should be fine. Next was shopping for food. I went to the supermarket. Celery, tomatoes, cucumber and almost every other type of vegetable that I could find. Alphonse also liked to drink milk, I think... I bought a canteen of high class milk. Then a water filter and instant coffee, since I will have to stay up pretty late on the days that I choose to go "to a later night time shift." For emphasize, I also bought meat and fish. And then I left the supermarket.

On the streets, I was pickpocketing every person that I could, though I avoided the military staff and people with alchemic symbols and guns. I needed all the money that I could get for Alphonse. Everything was for Alphonse's sake. Then I went to a corner store. It was not really a store, more like a garage. There was graffiti all over the door and on what could have been a doorframe, there was a large sign that said: INTO-DARKNES. Many people probably thought that it was a sign depicting the danger of the place but I had found out, the second day that I came to Central that it was simply the initial of every past owner of the shop. Ingrid Norson, Tomson Outhol, -Dennis Archway, Richor Karnels and Ned Eroil Sengod. Dennis Archway always chose to write a hyphen before writing his name. However, the sign depicted nicely what was inside the store.

"Give me two hunting knives and another combating shirt," I told the man at the counter.

"Fifty," he responded.

I payed then received my items. Then, someone hit from behind. I turned around and stabbed his stomach.

"Woah woah," the man that hit me said. "Calm down."

"What do you want?" I asked

"Are you strong?"

"I use Alchemy."

"Listen to my proposition. I am a hunter, but the work I do is dangerous. Your work is probably at most a slight bit better. When you need help, throw one of these into the air," he handed me a pack of long silver objets. "If you do, I will definitely go to help you."

"What is the condition?"

"If I die during one of my jobs, you have to succeed me as owner."

"Are you in any position to choose? Do you have a son or someone of the sort who can do that for you?"

"None, but if you want to know why, it is because you remind me of how I used to be."

"I would not have asked that. There is no point." At that time, I wondered how long it has been since I stopped asking "Why" to everything. It was meaningless because no one answered. Little by little, that word disappeared from my vocabulary.

"Deal?"

"Deal."

"Samuel-Hodren. I forgot my family name. Be sure to add my initials to the sign, too."

"Edward."

"Edward what?"

I thought for a while. I could not tell him "Elric." That would also stain the name that belonged to Alphonse. "Edward, Edward L-Laybra." I almost laughed after realizing what I just did. What would the people think after they see the name sign "INTO-DARKNESS-HEL?" That would be fun to see, but my main objective is not "fun."

Then Samuel held out his hand. I shook it. "Call me Sam."

* * *

When I got home that night, it was exactly eleven twelve. That was good. It takes about twelve minutes to get to Central and back, too. I loaded the refrigerator and hid my other goods under my mattress. Then I went to Alphonse's room to make sure that he was asleep. He was in bed, snoring lightly. I approached him, reaching my hand to tuck him in properly but then stopped. My hand quavered as I realized that there was no way I could touch Alphonse with the same hand that killed four people. Instead, I grabbed his sweater and gently dropped it over him. I closed the door silently and left.

After eating the dinner that Alphonse prepared for me, I returned to my room and saw the clock strike two AM. It was time. I left out the window after changing into my combat shirt, mask and glove and bringing my two hunting knives and turning my automail arm into a blade. Again, I jumped on the roofs of houses and then I spotted it: Another rich mansion that has many things to steal. In my mind, I reminded myself over and over again: "_This is for Alphonse's sake, Alphonse's sake, Alphonse's sake." _I thought about that again and again until I was certain that it was imprinted into my mind. Then I just over the fence and the hunt began.

Almost immediately after I jumped in, ten guards spotted me. They were hiding in the tree's shadows and I was unable to see them. I cursed and then charged. Luckily, they underestimated and they were surprised at my age. I quickly killed all of them before they could scream for help. Each time I stabbed one of them in the heart with my blade, I heard the gushing of blood with splattered on me and the sound of his organ's being squashed, mixing with the sound of his veins crackling and breaking. Even though every kill lasted fore less than a quarter second, I could hear the sound so clearly I was wondering if time slowed down every time I went to kill. I could not miss the look on the ten faces of the guards as they fell, one after another. Tonight, I will see at least fourteen faces in my nightmare.

Next, I charged into the main building of the mansion, however, this time, I learned one lesson. I grabbed one of the smaller guards who guards the inside of the mansion and asked him, "Where is the money?"

He glared at me, "As if I would tell you, you goddamned lowlife." Before attacking me. I blocked his attack and locked his hands onto a wall. I was a lot shorter than him but that barely mattered. With my automail arm, I held a blade to his heart.

"I am not a coward. I will protect the people of this house even if it costs my life!" he cried. His comment felt like a sharp sword, stabbing into my chest.

Holding back my emotions, I faked a smile. Even if he could only see my eyes and hair, he could tell that I was smiling. "Oh, so what if I killed your master instead? What if I killed every person in this house? If you tell me the place of the treasure, you can save your mistress' and master's life, so why not?"

He glared at me but I could tell by his expression that he knew my reasoning was correct. "Second floor suite." He muttered. Then I killed him. Again, the same process echoed in my ears, reaching my brain. "Argh," I groaned, despite trying so hard not to. However, I was certain that he did not lie. That much was enough. He definitely new that if he had lied and I had discovered it, I would carry out my murder threat, but I was not sure if what I said was a bluff or not. No, it was not. Because this is for Alphonse's sake. I was certain of it. Fifteen faces in my nightmares.

On the second floor, I immediately saw the suite and inside, I noticed the distinguished safe with its arbitrary decorations. Once more, I sliced it open and took everything, putting it into my bag. I also took with me a few goods for trade. If only I could leave smoothly now, then everything could be alright.

If only it could be that easy. But that was only a foolish hope.

While leaving the large mansion, the guards probably discovered their young and loyal companion's body. They charged forward, crying out. I tried to run away, but I could not. They surrounded me, in a large circle. Then they attacked. I had no other choice back then, so I had to kill them. As I murdered all of them, I said to them, "You. Damned. Idiots. If. You. Shout. Like. That. Your. Masters. Are. Bound. To. Notice. And. Come. Down. Do. You. Want. Them. To. Die. Too?" As I killed, I was overwhelmed by the smell, taste, sound, sight and feel of blood. I simply killed and killed and killed thinking again and again,_ For Alphonse's sake, for Alphonse's sake,_ until I lost count of how many people I killed. I was dancing in a pool of blood with silver blades and falling bodies. The room became a red box and I was dancing like a puppet in a theater. Then there were no more people left. I dragged my sac, that was thankfully waterproof, and myself out of the room only to come face to face with the Mistress and Master and son of the house. There faces showed nothing besides fear and disgust.

"You dirty pig!" the Master shouted at me. I killed him. Next I killed the son. Then I turned to the Mistress, but the expression on her face changed. All I saw on her face then was pity and for some unknown reason, it showed an expression similar to the one mother used to wear. When I asked mother, she said it was love. I thought then, that the Mistress' face was a lie. There is no way that she can truly make that expression towards me. I walked towards her, but instead of cowering, she also walked towards me. Then, she opened her arms and hugged me, embracing me in her warmth. She patted my head and said, "Child, it is past your bed time. I will take you home." Those were the last words that she spoke before she fell limp onto the ground, dead. I fell with her, suddenly realizing what I just did. The faces of every man I killed rushed into my head. I hung onto the Mistress' shirt and started sobbing uncontrollably. That was not a good sign. It will be like last night all over again. I needed to stop, to go back to Alphonse. To protect Alphonse. To make money for Alphonse. Alphonse.

After I finished crying, I gave a final farewell to the people of the house and ran outside without looking back.

* * *

After entering my room from the window, I repeated my process of air freshener, bath and sign on the door. Then, I realized that, again, I would not be able to sleep until morning, so I washed my clothes. It was a lot more difficult to remove the blood from my clothes than I thought. It was like acrylic paint. So I scrubbed and scrubbed. By eight in the morning, the clothes were almost completely clean and resting in the washroom to dry. I flopped onto my mattress and fell asleep. The next time that I woke up was at three in the afternoon.

* * *

"Good morning, Nii-san," Alphonse greeted me as I walked out of the room.

I put on my fake smile, the only face that I will show Alphonse. "Hello," I mumbled sleepily.

"When is your shift today?"

"I do not have a shift today."

"Can we go outside together today?"

"Sure."

"But we have to be careful. I heard that there was more murders in the neighbourhood."

"Al, I am going to go outside for a walk first. I will come home to pick you up in an hour and then we can go outside, okay? I have to check something at military headquarters."

"I will also go with Nii-san."

"Please, Al. If you go there, maybe the ghosts will appear."

"O-o-okay then..."

Thank God Alphonse was still afraid of ghosts.

When I left the house, I went the first house target to see if any evidence was left by accident. When I got there, the officers were speaking.

"This is horrible," said a blond male officer.

"No kidding," replied an orange haired male officer who looked slightly round.

"Who in the world could do this kind of thing?"

"Some crazy thief trying to strike rich and has mental issues?"

"I would not expect anything less than that."

Hiding in the crowd, I ran away. I did not want to hear anymore. No more, no more. Only for Alphonse's sake. Only.

I went to the next scene. There, the crowd was pushing to see. Over twenty officers were standing there observing the scene.

"What a thing," said the black haired man, whom I recognized as Mustang.

"Please refrain from unnecessary remarks, Colonel," a blond woman scolded.

"Okay, okay."

"Here is the current report. The entire family was killed along with all the guards. The safe appears to be broken and no evidence was left behind by the suspect. There was a rumour around the citizens that the same person who targeted the Erisons' yesterday was the same culprit. The style that the people were killed were the same, a stab through the heart. All victims died almost immediately. There were no beheadings this time. Total deaths of the two incidents: forty nine people."

"Forty nine, that is a new level of horrid. Even looking at this scene, the thief looks to be more like a mass murderer than a thief."

"There was also proof that Alchemy was used to enter the house. Other than that, there has been no other evidence leading to the identity of the murderer."

"I swear, when I find that person I will sla-"

"You will give him to the military and wait for the Fuhrer to make the final decision before slapping him across the face.

Once again, I ran away.

* * *

Chapter 3 - Murderer

**_Thank you for reading._**

**_~Ren0Zia_**


	4. Meeting

_**Disclaimer: I do not own FullMetal Alchemist**_

* * *

**Ed's POV**

"Nii-san, hurry up," Alphonse called to me as I was still tying my shoes and he was hurrying outside. "We can explore the capital today!"

"Okay. Coming, Al." I answered, smiling again. I will only show this smile in front of Alphonse. I reminded myself of that so many times.

While we were shopping, Alphonse stared at everything in amazement. "Woah! Nii-san, these things are awesome! Did you know that these things really existed?!"

"No. Could I see it for a sec?"

"Sure."

"Al, is there anything that you want?

"What can I get?"

"Anything you want. I earned a lot of money working and my job is really easy and fun so to celebrate our coming here to the Capital, I will by you anything you want."

"Yay!" then can se have a cake to celebrate, too?"

"Of course."

That day, we bought many things for Alphonse. Alphonse was happy. That was good.

"Is this really okay, Nii-san? We bought a lot of things," Alphonse asked.

"Yes. I still have a lot of money left."

"When I grow up, I will be just like Nii-san and work hard for the both of us, okay?" After he said that, I panicked. No. No, he cannot become like me. Not me. I will make sure of that.

"Thank you, Al, but I am horrible at housework chores so could you do that instead of getting a job?"

"Sure."

Just then, a large dog crashed into me. "Ah!" I screamed.

"Do not do that, Alexander!" a squeaky voice cried. I was sprawled on the ground.

"Sorry for the inconvenience. I hope you are not hurt?" said a large man with a little bit of brown hair and round glasses. "Now, Nina, hold on tight to Alexander's leash." The girl called Nina nodded.

"Ah, I am fine," I answered.

"As an apology, would you like to come over to our mansion to eat dinner?" the man asked.

"Really, can we?" Alphonse said, hopefully.

I was doubtful. Can we trust this man? What does he want with us? These thoughts were flying around in my head. However, Alphonse wanted to go, so I agreed. "Thank you for your offer."

When we got to his house, something unexpected happened. As we walked through the gate of the man's property, the man called Mustang was walking out.

"I left a notice about the yearly test at your doorstep, Shou Tucker" said Colonel Mustang.

"Oh, thank you, Colonel," replied the man, who I then knew was called Shou Tucker.

As I walked past Colonel Mustang, I kept my head down, hoping he would not see me. I was too late. He recognized me. "Hey, you, I need to talk to you for a second," he barked at me.

I kept my smile plastered on my face and turned to Alphonse, "Go inside with Mr. Tucker first, okay? I will go in a bit."

Alphonse nodded. Then I turned around and faced Colonel Mustang.

"I did not know that facial expressions could change so fast," he laughed. "What happened to your smile?"

"How can I help you?" I answered. _This man got in the way. He made me leave Alphonse alone with Shou Tucker._ That was the only thought on my mind at that time.

Colonel Mustang's face straightened and he walked outside the gate, signalling me to follow him. "I would like an explanation. The day that you, someone I have never seen during my many years of working at the Capital, turns up at Central, beating up two guards, there was a murder case in the neighbourhood with four victims. All their money has been stolen and no evidence was left behind. A steal-and-kill case like that has not happened in years. Do you not find that funny? My co-workers have also told me that they saw a short blond kid walking into some stray store that no one dares go into."

"Is that a question?"

"No matter how I look at it, you are suspicious."

"I am not the culprit."

"A stupid brat like you could not pull that off. Murder is not accomplishable by a kid about a decade of age. I am simply asking if you have any connection to it."

If my research was correct, then I could run away from this quickly. I needed to get back to Alphonse. I smirked, trying out my farce. "I did a small bit of research before coming here, Colonel Mustang. I heard that you participated in the Ishbal Civil War. I also heard that two doctors were murdered by a certain man because they were curing the injuries both their enemies and friends."

"Get to the point."

"Did you kill them?"

Mustang's expression changed from disgust to guilt. "Were the doctors called Rockbell?"

It was my turn to be surprised. I could not keep the terror off of my face. Rockbell. Winry's parents. Did this man kill them? That was not good. I was getting off track. I thought to myself again, _Protect Alphonse, protect Alphonse. _I asked again, out of desperate curiosity, "Did you kill them?"

"Do you know them?"

Mustang will not answer my question. By then, I already knew that he killed them but I could not move. I needed to hear a definite answer. "They were my childhood friend's parents. Did you kill them?" I asked one more time, putting a little more force into my voice.

"Y-yes." I barely heard his answer. His voice sounded lower than a whisper, I understood clearly what he said. Following his answer, he straightened his back, "I will speak to you another day, boy. I expect a complete answer by then. Good day."

I glared at him. He left.

* * *

When I knocked on the door of the Tucker estate, Alphonse answered the door. "Nii-san, what did he want?"

I smiled, "He was talking to me about a message my superior wanted to pass to me about a job. Remember Al, my job is a secret."

"Okay, Nii-san."

Then we walked into the large mansion. It was probably slightly larger than the houses that I stole from during the past two days. In the dining room, Nina and Shou Tucker were sitting at one end of the long table. Alphonse sat down across from Nina and I sat down beside him.

"Please enjoy your meal," Shou Tucker said, pointing to the breat and soup with vegetables and steak on the table.

"Thank you for the food," Nina, Alphonse and I answered.

"We have a cake. We should eat it together after this," Alphonse suggested. "Is that okay, Nii-san?"

"Sure," I answered.

During the meal, we talked about many things. Shou Tucker called himself an Alchemist that specialized in human transmutation. "I made a chimera that understood human speech once," he continued. "She died not long after I finished her, though."

At that time, I thought that it was amazing. I was fascinated in his detailed descriptions. Alphonse started playing with his tissu with Nina, though. After dinner, I spoke with Shou Tucker for a while. We talked about ways to improve transmutation circles and many other things. After, when it was getting late, he promised me something, "If I ever finish another chimera that understood human speech, you will be the first one that I show it to."

After that, we left.

"Can we go there again, Nii-san? It was really fun!" Alphonse asked me.

Thank God that Alphonse enjoyed that. "We will see." I answered. Even though Alphonse had a lot of fun and Shou Tucker explained so many things about Alchemy, there was something wrong with that household. It seemed to me that Shou Tucker was slightly crazy, yet it might be my imagination. However, no matter what is there as an exchange, if Shou Tucker hurts Alphonse, he will have to pay very dearly. On the other hand, I will never, until my last breath, allow Shou Tucker to do anything to him.

* * *

When we reached home, Alphonse went to sleep almost immediately. I did not leave the house that night. It was too risky is Mustang was keeping an eye on me as he said. Instead, I wanted to test something out. I left the window and sat on the apartment roof. Then I threw one of the shiny objects that Samuel gave me in the air. Less than half a minute later, Samuel appeared in front of me.

"Samuel," I said.

"How can I help you?" he asked.

"Cause some trouble at one of the middle size mansions."

"How?"

I gave him a bomb that I bought while shopping with Alphonse. "Throw it in at two AM."

"Alright. By the way, just Sam is fine."

"Good night."

Then, Samuel disappeared.

That night, I could not sleep again. Whenever I tried, I simply woke up one minute later covered in sweat. There was nothing for me to do so I began sorting out the things that are under my mattress. When the sun came up at five in the morning, I was able to sleep again. I woke up at noon.

* * *

"You woke up earlier than usual, Nii-san," Alphonse greeted me.

"I did not have a night shift yesterday." I replied.

"Oh, that is true."

"I have work tonight though. Same time. Do not wait for me." I was speaking selfishly again. Alphonse would not wait for me anyway. That was all right. It was for Alphonse's sake. Alphonse's sake.

"Okay."

That day, I had nothing to do during the eight hours until my shift. I would have gone out shopping, but I would be unable to go to INTO-DARKNES or to a trading shop with a gold watch. If possible, Colonel Mustang's underlings might be hanging around this area because of the bomb. Out of boredom, I returned to my room and tried to get the last bit of the dried blood out of my shirt. I noticed that my room started smelling like blood again and sprayed air freshener all over again. I also used the air freshener for the couch and bathroom so Alphonse would not think that there was something strange about the way I smell. I counted a few bills, putting them into my pocket, and bringing along with me the last of the pocket watches to trade in. Then, I helped Alphonse a little with his laundry, still pretending that I did not know how to wash shirts properly. Then Alphonse asked me the question that I knew would be inevitably asked.

"Nii-san, did anything fun happen while you were at work two days ago?"

Thanks to Winry's previous obsession over acting, when her parents where still alive, I learned a lot about how to keep my worry and facial expressions under control while, at the same time, elaborate and lie without having to think for a long time. "Um, there was not anything exceptionally strange but I think one small black dog got past the surveillance guards and one of my superiors went crazy. He was screaming and shouting as if he saw a mountain lion. I later learned that he was simply afraid of dogs, though."

Alphonse laughed, "Tell me these stories more often, Nii-san."

"Okay, I will, but I doubt that everyday would be as fun."

After that, we talked and laughed until it was seven at night. Then, Alphonse said something that made me panic.

"Nii-san, can I go over to Mr. Tucker's place again? He invited me."

I stared at him for a moment, forgetting that my fake smile was still upon my face. "Alphonse, is it alright if you wait until next time when I am free? I want to know them better before imposing on them again." What was Shou Tucker planning? What does he want? There was something wrong with Shou Tucker. I knew that since the second that I met him, but he was kind to Alphonse and I, so I could not pinpoint what was wrong with him.

Alphonse looked disappointed, "Oh, um, okay then."

I was scared, terrified, that Alphonse would leave me and choose Shou Tucker. What if he went to Shou Tucker's house? I had saddened Alphonse, so now he might leave me. I could only look at him and "smile." "Sorry, Al, but could you promise me that you will not go to Mr. Tucker's house today? Maybe we can go another time or invite them over to our place next time? Does that sound good?"

Alphonse's face brightened, "Okay, promise, Nii-san!"

* * *

That night, I went to go shopping and trading during the time of my "night time shift." Food and another pot for the stove, while pickpocketing a few unlucky people. Afterwards, I visited INTO-DARKNES to see if I could meet Samuel and make sure that he was still alive. When I arrived, I saw Samuel walking out, slightly bruised and battered.

"Hi, Ed," he said.

"Edward," I corrected.

"Did you come to check out my products or did you come t-?"

"To see if you are still alive."

"I am, without a doubt, alive and kicking."

"What happened," I said glancing at his bruised arm.

"What? This? I made a public announcement about the successor who will be taking my place as owner of this store. It seems like some people were not too happy, though."

I lowered my eyes and grumbled, "If you, a grown man, cannot beat them, how do you expect me to when you die?"

"Take this from a foolish grown man: If you listen to too many foolish grown men, you will think just as foolishly as they do. You will do fine as owner."

I stared at him confused.

"You will understand eventually," he concluded. "Bye Ed."

"Edward."

Then he left. I, too, left quickly after that. It was midnight.

* * *

After arriving home, the first thing I did was check on Alphonse. He was sleeping soundly in his bed. Once again, I reached out to tuck him in and to touch him, confirming that he was still alive, but caught myself. I needed to stop doing that. After exiting Alphonse's room, I went to my room and got prepared for "work." I put on my combat shirt, brought my two knives, mask and bag, then, I made my automail into a blade. Then, like the two other nights, I left out the window.

Today was slightly different from the others. I searched around for a house, finding one with slightly more security than the other two. Then I went to that house and walked towards the gate quietly. I walked forward and like always, just before reaching the tall gate, clapped my hands together and used the ground to boost me up, allowing me to get into the fence, making sure to return the gate to its original state. However, this time, I made a mistake. As soon as I jumped over the gate, I heard a whistle being blown two times.

Almost immediately, forty military guards who, I guessed to be, hiding in the bushes prior to my "visit" to the mansion. They caught me off guard. They surprised me. I swore and then attacked one of them. This was bad. If they caught me now, I would be unable to protect Alphonse, anymore. That was the only thing on my mind, so I killed the guard. I heard the guard groan as he fell, signalling to his comrades, even though it is the last thing that he will do. Then, with a loud splatter and thud, he fell to the ground, blood bursting from his side. The other guards began attacking, too. Some of them started shooting their guns and rifles. I erected a barrier around myself by changing the sonics of the sound of the bullets with Alchemy and reflected the bullets back towards the guards. The bullets entered the weapons and they exploded, bringing the soldiers with them to a painful death. As other people charged, I killed them by throwing knives, trying to make sure that their blood does not stain my clothes. If the blood of a member of the military was found on my clothes, things could prove to become troublesome. As the last of the guards fell, they signaled a white blast of smoke into the air. Following that, a red spark of flame lightninged towards me with remarkable speed. I knew that I would not be able to dodge that, but there was no helping it. I stood there, waiting and staring, but a dark figure darted in the way of the blazing stream of fire and I was saved. The person fell onto the ground, bleeding and dying.

"I got you!" screamed Colonel Mustang, running over to the bleeding man and I. I ignored him, staring at the dying man.

"Samuel," I whispered to him.

"Sam," he replied weakly.

"It is you!" yelled Colonel Mustang. "I knew it, you had something to do with the steal-and-kill cases." Then his eyes widened as they fell upon his fallen comrades. "Did you kill them?" he asked me.

"It was me," Samuel answered. "This boy has nothing to do with it. I asked him to come do an errand for me. He did not know what I was planning. I threatened him." Then he looked towards me. "I am sorry." The light in his eyes began fading, slowly disappearing.

I stared at him, amazed. How could he lie and die for someone that he had so recently met? I did not know or understand even the slightest bit. "Sam," I murmured.

"You finally... called... me," Samuel said, before he died, probably because of blood loss and a few other causes. Then, I stared at Colonel Mustang reminding myself: _Protect Alphonse, for Alphonse's sake._

"Is he telling the truth?" Colonel Mustang asked.

"Did you forget what you told me yesterday? "There is no way a damn brat like you could do such a thing,"" I answered.

"Well, that is true," he paused, "but you will have to tell me what you do know. Come with me to Central."

I needed to get back to Alphonse, but I could not tell hime that, so I followed him.

When we arrived at Central, Colonel Mustang flashed a card at the guards and they let us in. After arriving at his office, he sat at his desk and invited me to sit in the chair in front of it. I accepted his offer. "Begin your story," he commanded.

* * *

Chapter 4 - Meeting

**_Thank you for reading! Please review if possible._**

**_~Ren0Zia_**


End file.
